Champions League Predictions: Quarter Finals First Leg

The quarterfinals for the 2014 Champions League take place this Tuesday and Wednesday with teams participating in the first leg matches. There are just two Premier League teams remaining in the competition and both face rather tough competition.

In addition to Manchester United and Chelsea are three Spanish sides, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, and Real Madrid along with two German teams in Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. Rounding out the eight teams is French leaders Paris Saint Germain.

Most pundits don’t give Manchester United any hope of progressing against Champions League holders Bayern Munich. FC Bayern are certainly the favorites to win this round and become the first Champions League repeat winners (since the renaming of the competition).

Barcelona and Real Madrid are both expected to advance, and will start at home in the first leg, but are both coming up against teams that could give them a surprise.

PSG and Chelsea play each other in a tie that really could go either way. Both teams have strengths that could take them to the final, but both also have weaknesses that could be exploited and see them dumped out.